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Teach Me How To Dabble: What I Learned About Pitching To Angel Investors

I’m a big fan of learning new things from new people. Well, let me correct myself. I like to learn new things from people that know what they are talking about. Sometimes I learn things from people that don’t know what they are talking about, but that’s a very different type of learning.

When I saw that Jeff Carter was teaching a class on how to pitch to angel investors on Dabble, I couldn’t resist. Jeff is a co-founder of Hyde Park Angels and an avid blogger, so I’m pretty sure he knows the topic intimately. I signed up on the site, paid my dues, and was ready to learn. I sent the link to another friend who registered and met me at the class.

Here was the confirmation e-mail.

We went to the class, which was an intimate setting. We spent the first 10 minutes introducing ourselves and talking about why we registered. I saw some familiar faces as well, and overall it was a very informal and fun environment. There was a minor issue with getting in through the front door, but that was resolved pretty quickly.

Here is a quick and dirty summary of what I learned:

You have 90 seconds to get an angel investor’s attention.

Angel investors are motivated by more than profit; they want to be part of something BIGGER.

Show how you can get ALL of the market, not just a slice of it. Make them believe you can get it ALL.

They like your idea, but they are mostly investing in you.

“People don’t buy what you do, people buy why you do it.”

Close with the intention of getting a deeper meeting with the VC’s; Don’t close with numbers.

We ended with a Q&A which was great. You can be sure that Jeff will give you his honest opinion on any topic!